Application Testing Process

The company you work for is considering changing its applicant testing process. Your supervisor has asked you to address the following in a document that will be sent to other managers within the organization.

Write a short essay discussing some of the legal and ethical considerations of major types of tests: cognitive abilities, motor and physical abilities, personal interests, and achievement tests. Given these considerations, which testing system do you believe may be the most legitimate? Remember to compare and contrast-testing methods specifically to demonstrate how the methodologies you have not selected may have more negative ethical and legal consequences than the one you have selected.

In your answer also discuss ways in which in technology have helped to make the applicant testing and selection process more efficient and effective.

Solution Preview

Please refer to response attached. The choice of applicant testing system often depends on the type of job and job requirements (i.e., personality versus attitude), the number of resources available (i.e., cost of the testing system), and the actual knowledge that the organization has about testing. Usually, a comprehensive testing approach is found to be best practice, (i.e., combination of interview, achievement, and personality) which more likely will tap the full range of the applicant's skills (i.e., some applicants may have test anxiety which will not allow them to demonstrate their true abilities, but when combined with a face to face interview this would become more apparent and a fairer process for this applicant, etc.) and seems to best meet the legal and ethical standards of fair treatment for each applicant.

I hope this helps and take care.

RESPONSE:

1. The company you work for is considering changing its applicant testing process. Your supervisor has asked you to address the following in a document that will be sent to other managers within the organization. Write a short essay discussing some of the legal and ethical considerations in testing.

The number of laws and regulations governing the employment process has increased over the past four decades. Many of these laws and regulations have important implications for conducting employment assessment. This response discusses what you should do to make your practices consistent with legal, professional, and ethical standards.
1. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act (CRA) of 1964, as amended in 1972; Tower Amendment to Title VII
2. Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA)
3. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) - 1972
4. Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures - 1978; adverse or disparate impact, approaches to determine existence of adverse impact, four-fifths rule, job-relatedness, business necessity, biased assessment procedures
5. Title I of the Civil Rights Act (CRA) of 1991
6. Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) - 1990
7. Record keeping of adverse impact and job-relatedness of tests
8. The Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing - 1985; The Principles for the Validation and Use of Personnel Selection Procedures - 1987
9. Relationship between federal, state, and local employment laws.

Principles of Assessment Discussed: Use only assessment instruments that are unbiased and fair to all groups
The general purpose of employment laws and regulations is to prohibit unfair discrimination in employment and provide equal employment opportunity for all. Unfair discrimination occurs when employment decisions are based on race, sex, religion, ethnicity, age, or disability rather than on job-relevant knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics. Employment practices that unfairly discriminate against people are called unlawful or discriminatory employment practices.
The summaries of the laws and regulations will focus mainly on their impact on employment testing and assessment. In other words, before a manager institutes any policies based on these laws and regulations, read the specific laws carefully, and consult with your legal advisors regarding the implications for your particular assessment program.

1. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act (CRA) of 1964 (as amended in 1972); Tower Amendment to Title VII
Title VII is landmark legislation that prohibits unfair discrimination in all terms and conditions of employment based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. Other subsequent legislation, for example, ADEA and ADA, has added age and disability, respectively, to this list. Women and men, people age 40 and older, people with disabilities, and people belonging to a racial, religious, or ethnic group are protected under Title VII and other employment laws. Individuals in these categories are referred to as members of a protected group. The employment practices covered by this law include the following:

Employers having 15 or more employees, employment agencies, and labor unions are subject to this law.
The Tower Amendment to this act stipulates that professionally developed workplace tests can be used to make employment decisions. However, only instruments that do not discriminate against any protected group can be used. Use only tests developed by experts who have demonstrated qualifications in this area.

2. Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA)
This Act prohibits discrimination against employees or applicants age 40 or older in all aspects of the employment process. Individuals in this group must be provided equal employment opportunity; discrimination in testing and assessment is prohibited. If an older worker charges discrimination under the ADEA, the employer may defend the practice if it can be shown that the job requirement is a matter of business necessity. Employers must have documented support for the argument they use as a defense.

ADEA covers employers having 20 or more employees, labor unions, and employment agencies. Certain groups of employees are exempt from ADEA coverage, including public law enforcement personnel, such as police officers and firefighters. Uniformed military personnel also are exempt from ADEA coverage.

3. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)-1972
The EEOC is responsible for enforcing federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination, including Title VII, the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the ADEA, and the ADA. It receives, investigates, and processes charges of unlawful employment practices of employers filed by an individual, a group of individuals, or one of its commissioners. If the EEOC determines that there is "reasonable cause" that an unlawful employment practice has ...

Solution Summary

Legal and ethical considerations of major types of tests: cognitive abilities, motor and physical abilities, personal interests, and achievement tests are fully detailed in this solution. It also looks at what test is most legitimate through comparing and contrasting the testing methods specifically to demonstrate how the methodologies selected may have more negative ethical and legal consequences than the one you have selected. Recently, technology has helped to make the applicant testing and selection process more efficient and effective.